Piano Street adds six pieces by Beethoven and seven pieces by Gurlitt to our catalogue of easy and intermediate pieces. Recordings of all the pieces will soon be available. Read more...

Beauty and Hope in the 21st Century

The recently published compilation “Beauty and Hope in the 21st Century” contains contemporary solo piano pieces from many internationally renowned composers. Nikolas Sideris and Editions Musica Ferrum generously give access to complete scores of new piano pieces from the compilation that are available to download and print for Piano Street members. Read more...

Murray Perahia’s Major Transfer

Perahia releases his first album for Deutsche Grammophon presenting Bach’ French Suites. He sees the French Suites as “Bach on the highest level”, adding, “I don’t think Bach wrote one note that didn’t have wider meanings and that wasn’t to be tackled with all one’s heart and soul.” Read more...

Italian and International Excellence in Cremona

Piano Street visited Cremona last weekend to meet with Italian and international pianists and piano brand representatives at the Piano Experience. Read more...

Liszt’s Love Story with Lisitsa

In Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz No.1, Faust gets seduced by Mephistopheles’ intoxicating violin playing on a wedding at the village inn. Hear it performed by Valentina Lisitsa in this new video. Read more...

The Simultaneous Conversation

Daniel Barenboim describes music as different from human interaction through speech. If two people cross talk each other, then neither understands the other. Conversation only works if one talks and one listens and then switch roles. In music, the conversation isn’t verbal, so each participant’s voice is heard and understood at the same time. Hear him explain this musical principle. Read more...

Ditching the Intermission?

British pianist Stephen Hough addressed the issue of shrinking and ageing classical music audiences. Admitting that it’s a complicated issue, and acknowledging that many ideas have been floated – better education, more creative repertoire, lower pricing etc – he went on to focus on one of the more practical aspects of the subject: the intermission. Read more...

Explosive Piano and Percussion Rendezvous in Beijing

The rare combination of Yuja Wang and famous drummer and multi-percussionist Martin Grubinger performed together at the Concert Hall of NCPA in Beijing on August 18th. In this exceptional and particular formation, a special version of Bartók’s Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion was presented along with “One Study One Summary” by John Psathas. Read more...

Piano News Flash

2016-12-08

Jazz Conflicts Between Giants

Great genius sometimes begets great egos. Such was the case between the members of the Bill Evans Trio and others in the jazz scene of the late 1960s. American jazz purists rebelled against any European influences, but both Miles Davis and Fletcher Henderson put them in their respective places. Read more at rhinegold.co.uk

2016-12-07

New Learning Research Offers Hope to People Who Feel 'Stuck'

One might think it may be easier to master a large set of skills one at a time, but new research shows that not to be the case. In fact, what used to be considered 'overload' is now the preferred method. It may not seem as if much is retained right away, but long-term development and retention of information and skills is much greater when the mind is forced to work on many things at once. Read more at bulletproofmusician.com

2016-12-10

Young Pianists Realizing The Worth of Past Masters

The past paragons of piano performance enthralled audiences with their combination of power, insight, and almost otherworldly connection to the music they were playing. Young pianists of today are slowly figuring out that they don't 'know it all' and that tapping into that vast realm of greatness isn't a sign of weakness. Instead, it's a sign of a willingness to learn and bettering oneself. Read more at primephonic.com

2016-12-09

Too Much Focus?

Yevgeny Sudbin sits upon the precipice of immortality. Following such once-in-a-lifetime talents as Richter and Rachmaninoff in the sphere of Russian pianists, Sudbin sometimes finds his attention wandering. He worries that his furious focus on single topics will lead him astray when that focus falls upon trivial things. Read more at primephonic.com

2016-12-06

Stott Starts New Position Down Under

Kathryn Stott took a job to direct the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, which is something she's wanted to do for a long time. She plans to settle down and take her career in new directions. Read more at jessicamusic.blogspot.se

2016-12-05

Say Follows Great Eastern European Tradition

Fazil Say draws heavily on the music of his native Turkey in both his compositions and in his performance style. He is only the latest in a long line of distinguished musicians who have relied on the same source for their inspiration, such as Bartok, Enescu and Ligeti. Read more at bianet.org

2016-12-04

Cho Fights Boredom

His parents never forced him to practice grueling hours or to lock himself in a room with only Czerny's 1,100 etudes for company. Instead, they nurtured him and let him make his own decisions. Now, Cho finds the sameness of performing the same piece over and over to be a danger to his overall musicianship. He draws on the freedom of expression his parents allowed him to freshen 'old warhorses' as if he were playing them for the first time. Read more at yonhapnews.co.kr

2016-12-03

Spanish Jazz Goes Back Further Than We Think

Alex Conde grabs the audience's attention at each even he plays by fusing jazz with flamenco. He draws heavily both on the music of his homeland and on the ground-breaking melodies of Thelonius Monk to produce his rare sound. Read more at berkeleyside.com